You don't have to travel all the way to Atlanta, there are places to go in Rome were you can be accepted for who you are.
Yup, smack dab in the middle of the Bible Belt, there are Gays and Lesbians living their lives; going to work or school, contributing to society.
We're here &we're queer, but not all of us are out; sometimes it is still safer to stay in the closet. Discrimination and harassment of gay youths occur in our local schools, we can be legally fired from our jobs for being gay, sodomy is illegal in Georgia, and the KKK is still active in the area (a recent ad in a local paper advertised for "white, non-Jewish Americans who want to stand up for their rights.")
We could move to Atlanta or San Francisco, but who would be left for those not yet "out" or still searching? So; I stay, my partner stays, our friends stay, and build our lives in a small southern town in North Georgia. We may not have a Pride Parade, but we can live our lives with dignity and pride.
And it's not all gloom and doom. There are businesses that treat us well, organizations happy to have us supporting them, and ordinary people who love and accept us for exactly who we are. It's these experiences and places I want you to know about, so you can support them too! Rome is rapidly becoming a small city; new people coming in, growth all over; and with that comes people who know us and love us and treat us well.
I want to let our fellow Roman "family" members that you are not alone. For those of you still in the closet, this can be a way to support the gay & lesbian community safely by supporting businesses, groups and organizations that support us. For those of you "out" as far as you can be, this can be a place of discovery, and you are welcome to contribute your own discoveries and experiences of living in Rome.
One last Very Important Disclaimer: the opinions expressed here are strictly my own unless otherwise noted, and do not imply endorsement by any of the businesses, organizations or groups that I mention.